Sony's top boss has thanked fans for being patient as we finally prepare to play The Last Guardian ten years after work on the game first began.

Head of worldwide studios Shuhei Yoshida said the global passion for the eagerly anticipated adventure game over the last decade has kept development alive.

Without the fans, it may never have seen the light of day.

But now we are just days from release and fans are at fever pitch.

The game centres around a young boy and his companion, a giant flying cat-like creature.

They work together to solve puzzles and escape captivity.

The Last Guardian screenshots from the long awaited PS4 game

Screenshots from Sony's PS4 exclusive, The Last Guardian

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Sony

The Last Guardian Screenshot

Yoshida said gamers' excitement helped Sony "maintain its momentum, energy and passion" for the project throughout its troubled development.

He said: "Thank you to all of you, fans of PlayStation, fans of [director] Ueda-san's work, for all the years we've been working on this title, we are able to maintain our momentum, energy and passion because we knew that you are waiting to play this game."

He added: "And I hope you enjoy this game when it comes out. The Last Guardian is for you."

Sony

The Last Guardian wouldn't be here after a decade without the fan support, says Shuhei Yoshida

The Last Guardian was originally revealed as an upcoming PS3 title back in 2009.

Even then it was two years into development.

But the game was so detailed and refined it struggled to run properly on that ageing console.

So it was switched to PS4 instead and re-revealed last year. It's now finally due out next week.

We'll bring you our definitive view of the game in the coming days once we get our hands on a copy.